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Tomato Chickpea Curry

Tomato Chickpea Curry

Add edamame and spinach to a basic tomato chickpea curry to make a super flavorful and colorful meal. You can make this high-protein vegan dinner in half an hour, so it's perfect for busy weeknights.

During busy weeks at MIT, I cook ridiculous amounts of food on the weekends, so I don't have to worry about meals throughout the week. Generally, I whip up a variation of peanut stew and some sort of curry. Since the local Trader Joe's has been out of coconut cream lately, I haven't been able to make my favorite coconut sweet potato curry, so I've been sticking to tomato-based curries.

Inspired by tomato chickpea curries I always see at Indian restaurants (chana masala), I made my own variation on this classic recipe. It's really easy to add frozen veggies and pre-washed spinach to any dish, so I tossed in edamame and spinach. So, technically, this is tomato chickpea edamame spinach curry, but that's a mouthful.

Onion: Required for tomato chickpea curry. Adds sweetness and depth. Any color onion (red, white, yellow) is okay. Milder onions, such as spring onions or shallots, would also work.

Tomatoes: Adds sauciness and flavor. Alternatively, you could make a coconut milk based curry. Directly substituting coconut milk for tomatoes would also work.

Chickpeas: Something to eat in the curry. Substituting 1 can of any beans (white beans, black beans) would work, but this is not standard.

Edamame: Something to eat in the curry. Substituting 1 bag of frozen peas or another can of chickpeas would work.

Spinach: Something to eat in the curry. Substituting other leafy vegetables, such as chard or kale, would work, but you would need to cook these vegetables for longer.

Step by Step Photos

Start by dicing an onion. You can use 1 whole onion or 1/2 an onion depending on the size of the onion and how much onion flavor you want.

Heat up the olive oil in a large pan over medium heat. Add 1 tablespoon of curry powder. Stirring frequently, cook for 30-40 seconds until fragrant. Toasting the spices is an easy way to add flavor to the finished dish.

Add in the onion, and cook for 5-7 minutes until golden brown. I also added 1/2 teaspoon of salt now so that the dish would be better seasoned.

Add the can of tomatoes, the can of chickpeas, and the bag of edamame. Simmer for 10-12 minutes until the onions are soft and the vegetables are warm. If you want firmer chickpeas and edamame, you should simmer the onions and tomatoes first and then add these towards the end.

Prewashed spinach makes adding additional greens to tomato chickpea curry super simple. Carefully stir in 1/2 pound of spinach until wilted. It should take about a minute for the spinach to wilt down significantly.

Serve the tomato chickpea curry immediately. Leftovers store well in the fridge for a few days. With tomatoes, chickpeas, edamame, and spinach, this curry makes a protein-packed, healthy vegan meal.

Thanks, Elaine! I really love the photos on your blog, and everything looks delicious. If you're looking for more blogger friends, I'd highly recommend checking out the BGB community. Also, I'd recommend the plug-in Easy Recipe for writing recipes so they can be more findable by Google. Good luck! 🙂